This is one of the cooler videos I have seen in some time. I strongly encourage you to take the 3.5 minutes necessary to watch it because it’ll offer you a powerful glimpse into the future:
Remember, although the system of translating neurological activity into speech is relatively slow and can only translate about 150 words today, the technology is only going to get better—exponentially better!
In the near term, the technology will prove extremely beneficial for patients with ALS and, in the mid-term, it may mean that you will no longer have to suffer through listening to the inane conversation of the guy sitting next to you on the plane.
However, I’d encourage you to “jump the curve” and focus on the last part of the video where Michael Callahan of Ambient talks about using the technology to augment human intelligence. It is plausible that in the future that as a result of related technology you will just think of a question and a smart device—which may be worn around your neck or wrist or, quite possibly, implanted in your brain—will simply retrieve the answer from the Internet and translate it back to you.
One question we will need to ask ourselves, therefore, is whether children should be able to use such technology when taking the SAT test. (Of course, in the future, the notion of college itself is likely to radically change as a result of other emerging technologies so the SAT could very well become irrelevant.)
Interested in some other implausible ideas about the future? Check some of these past posts:
The Robot Will See You Now
Operate on Yourself
57 Years is Now 41 Days
Death’s Slow Death
Self-Driving Cars
Do the Impossible
Enlarge Our Minds to a Space Elevator
Pong & The Future of the President’s Brain
Could You Really Love a Robot?
Do the Impossible: A Case Study
Jack Uldrich is a writer, futurist, public speaker and host of jumpthecurve.net. He is the author of seven books, including Jump the Curve and The Next Big Thing is Really Small: How Nanotechnology Will Change the Future of Your Business. He is also a frequent speaker on future technology and future trends, nanotechnology, innovation, change management and executive leadership to a variety of businesses, industries and non-profit organizations and trade associations.
